Machines for lasting footwear



June 21, 1966 G. T. RALPHS 3,256,543

MACHINES FOR LASTING FOOTWEAR Filed Oct 30, 1964 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOF fieofiefisvor? R LPHS W W *M June 21, 1966 e. T. RALPHS 3,256,543

MACHINES FOR LASTING FOOTWEAR Filed 001'. 30, 1964 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 FIG.3.

INVENTOP C riae Raven RALPHS 3,256,543 MACHINES FOR LASTING FOOTWEAR George Trevor Ralphs, Oadby, England, assignor to Ralphs Unified Limited Filed Oct. 30, 1964, Ser. No. 407,778 8 Claims. (Cl. 1214.'4)

This invention concerns machines for lasting footwear. It chiefly relates to a mould construction for use in a lasting machine for operating on the end portion (for example the heel seat or heel end) of a shoe, such machine comprising a mounting for a shape or form adapted to engage within said end portion of the shoe upper, means for holding a shoe upper in position on a shape or form on such mounting, a flexible outer mould adapted to embrace said end portion of the shoe upper on such shape or form and to grip it thereagainst, and wiper means to wipe the lasting margin of the upper material, around the end portion of the shoe upper, over an insole on said shape or form whilst the end portion of the upper is embraced by such mould and gripped by it against the shape or form. Such a machine forms the subject of co-pending patent application No. 372,962, to which reference is to be made for further particulars.

The expression shoe is used herein whenever the context permits in a broad sense to include all forms of outer footwear.

In operating a machine of the character described, an appropriate shape or form to suit the shoe to be lasted is placed on the mounting, an insole is placed on the shape or form and positioned thereon and an assembled shoe upper is then placed round the shape or form. This assembled shoe upper includes not only the leather outer layer of the upper but also an inserted stiifener of thermoplastic material, and at this stage has been preheated to soften the stiffener. The assembled upper is then gripped suitably by grippers and tensioned lengthwise of the shoe around the form. This having been done, the assembly consisting of the mounting, the shape or form, the tensioned upper. and the grippers, is then by relative movement between it and the outer mould brought into such a position that the outer mould embraces the end portion of the upper. The mould is of a type .which is substantially U-shapedin plan and comprises a rigid frame containing an inflatable bag extending around the U and lined with a flexible apron which in use makes contact with the exterior surface of the end portion of the upper, inflation of the bag serving to press said end portion inwards against the inner mould or form to cause it to conform to the contours of the latter. In order to assist in the conforming operation the inner mould or form may be heated. The bag having been inflated, heated wiper plates are moved inwards in substantially the plane of the upper surface of the insole to wipe in the lasting margins of the upper material over the surface of the insole. The heat applied through wiper plates actuates adhesive for attaching the margins to the insole.

Particularly if the upper assembly has been preheated to soften the stiffener there is a danger that the pressure contact between the apron and the outer surface of the upper will deleteriously affect the surface finish of the latter, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a mould construction'in which this danger can be greatly reduced or completely eliminated.

In accordance with the invention there is provided for a shoe lasting machine, an outside mould or generally horse shoe shape to embrace'an end of a shoe, comprising an outer support, an apron to engage with the exterior of the end portion of the shoe, such apron consisting of a sheet of polytetrafluoroethylene, and means mounting said apron on the support, said mounting means United States Patent 0 3,255,543 Patented June 21, 1966 providing a substantially non-yieldable portion to extend around the mould at the region of the feather line of the shoe and an inflatable bag forming a yieldable backing for the remainder of the apron. Polytetrafluoroethylene, commonly. known as PTFE an available under the trade names Fluon and Teflon, has the characteristics of exhibiting a marked refusal of adhesion and it has been found that the use of an apron of such material permits the surface finish of the upper to be preserved.

In a convenient construction the mounting means for the apron comprises an intermediate member substantially of U shape having a solid part extending around the feather line region and an internal tapered lip extending therefrom around the mould from one side to .the other, and the inflatable bag extends from outside said tapered lip and beyond it over the depth of the shoe upper. By this construction there is provided an adjustable mould by the use of which lasting of an end portion of a shoe simultaneously with moulding the shape therefrom can :be performed quickly and effectively and with uniform results Without causing damage to the material of the shoe. In practising the invention the mould may comprise an intermediate member which extends around the support and is formed with a solid portion extending around it at the region of the feather line,.a lip being provided on said intermediate member to extend inwardly from said solid portion, and the face of said lip on the interior of the mould being appropriately shaped to receive and support the apron. Thus a particularly effective supporting means for the apron is provided.

The lip of the intermediate member may be surrounded by a recess in the member into which the inflatable bag extends, and the apron of polytetrafluoroethylene may be held in place by being bonded to a supporting part of the mould.

The provisions of the invention are incorporated in a convenient form of construction which the illustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawings and will now be described with reference to the drawings in which FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a mould suitable for use in lasting the heel end of a shoe,

FIGURE 2 is a top plan view of the mould of FIG. 1,

FIGURE 3 is an under plan view of the same mould, and

FIGURE 4 is a detail view in cross section taken on the line 1VIV of FIG. 2.

The unould shown in the drawings comprises a rigid outer frame constructed of two parts 10 and 11 of approximately horse-shoe shape in plan and pivoted to one another by having pivot lugs 10a and 11a through which there passes a common pivot pin 12. The pivoting of the parts 10 and 11 causes them to be capable of opening and closing. This :pivotal connection, together with the plates X connected to the frame parts 10 and 11 provides means for adjusting the effective width of the support defined by said frame parts 10 and 11, thereby enabling the end part of a closed shoe upper to be-conveniently introduced into and removed from the mould. Such widthwise adjustment can be readily accomplished by coupling the plates X to a spreader positioning means (not shown), preferably power operated. The frame 10,

11 has a thin lining 13 of leather within which there is mounted a rubber lining 14 which may be about l s" thick. The layers 13 and 14 may be secured to one another and to the frame 10, 11 in any appropriate manner. To the rubber lining 14 there is attacheda backing or forming band 15 forming an intermediate member which at its upper part has a flat surface 16 that during a lasting operation is at the same level as the feather edge of the shoe being lasted. It is across the surface 16 that the wipers hereinbefore mentioned operate.

3 The band is provided with a cavity 17, see FIG. 4, having at its inner side an overhanging downwardly tapered lip 18. Into this cavity there is inserted an inflatable rubber bag 19 which is wrapped round with thin sheet leather shown at 20.

The rubber bag 19 is of flattened .form in section as shown and it extends around the U-shape of the mould with its upper part together with the surrounding leather strip 20 located in the cavity 17 behind the overhanging lip 18.

It will be observed from FIG. 4 that the cavity 17 in the band 15 does not extend to the feather edge region of the mould and that at this region the mould is of solid form as indicated at 21.

The bag 19 is retained in place at the lower part by means of shaped under plates 22 and 22a and clamping strips 23 and 23a the latter serving to grip against the plates 22 and 22a a depending margin 20a of the leather strip 20. The bag 19 is conveniently formed as an open ended tube the two ends of which are pressed closed between the outer ends of the frame members 10, 11 and vertical clamping strips 24 and 24a which serve to press the ends of the tubular bag 19 between the leather strip 20 and the lining 13. The bag is inflated through a connection passing through the frame member 10 and indicated at 25.

At the inner face of the mould there is an apron 26 to engage with the exterior of the heel end portion of a shoe and consisting of a sheet, conveniently 0.030 inch thick, of PTFE such as is sold under either of the trade names Fluron and Teflon. The material sold under the trademark Permaflon is suitable for this purpose. The apron provides an internal surface to the mould for engagement with upper material of a shoe to be lasted such inner surface being of a nature permitting the sunface finish of the shoe upper to be preserved despite the pressure applied inwardly to it during a combined moulding and lasting procedure. It will be seen from FIG. 4 that the apron 26 is attached to the band 15 only along the outer surface of the overhanging lip 18. It may be attached thereto in any appropriate manner. Thus the apron 26 at the feather line region is backed by a relatively solid backing provided by the part 21 of the band 15 and the back-ing'of the apron becomes progressively more yieldable at positions displaced downwardly of the mould, firstly in passing down the tapered lip 18 and afterwards at the regions Where the apron is backed more directly by the inflatable rubber bag 19. As can be seen most clearly in FIGS. 1 and 2 the apron 26 has forwardly and slightly upwardly extending wing portions 27 at each side which are found to be advantageous in pressing the upper material of the shoe inwardly immediately in front of the heel seat area during the lasting of the heel end of the shoe.

It will be seen from FIG. 4 that the surface of the overhanging lip 18 which is presented towards the shoe upper blends smoothly into the adjacent surface below it forming a backing for the apron 26. The surface backing the apron 26 assumes the appropriate contour for moulding the shoe upper around an appropriately shaped form, when the bag 19 is inflated, and the said surfaces are masked :by the apron 26 which rnakes contact with the outer surface of the shoe upper.

The PTFE sheet employed in the construction as hereinbefore described may be bonded to the depending lip 18 of the intermediate member 15 in any appropriate manner. One way to effect such bonding is to subject the PTFE sheet to a treatment known as sodiumetch and bond the etched surface to the lip 18 by use of an epoxy resin (for example that sold under the trademark Araldite AY105 using a suitable hardener).

The improved mould as just described is intended for use in performing a combined shaping or moulding and lasting operation on an end portion of a shoe as described in the above noted patent application No. 372,962.

What I claim is:

1. In a shoe lasting machine, an outside mould of generally horse shoe shape to embrace an end of a shoe, comprising in combination an outer support, an intermediate member which extends around the inside of the support and is formed with a solid portion extending around it at the region of the feather line of a shoe and a lip extending inwardly from said solid portion, an apron secured to the inside face of the lip of the intermediate member and extending therebeyond said apron consisting of a sheet of polytetrafiuoroethylene and extending heightwise of the mould and around it to a suitable extent to engage with the exterior of the end portion of a shoe, and an inflatable bag positioned around said lip and heightwise beyond it to form a yieldable backing for the lip and the part of the apron extending beyond the lip.

2. A mould according to claim 1 wherein the intermediate member is provided with an outer wall between which and the lip a recess is formed, and the inflatable bag extends into said recess and against the inside face of the outer wall of the intermediate member.

3. A mould according to claim 2 comprising a mounting for the inflatable bag consisting of a sheet of flexible material wrapped round the bag and means anchoring said flexible material to the said support.

4. A mould according to claim 1 wherein the apron of polytetraflu'oroethylene is mounted in place by being bonded to the interior of the lip of the intermediate member.

5. In a shoe lasting machine, an outside mould generally U-shaped and disposed to embrace an end portion of a shoe, comprising in combination an outer support, an apron disposed to engage with the exterior of such shoe end portion, said apron comprising a sheet of polytetrafluoroethylene, means for mounting said apron on said support, said mounting means comprising an intermediate member substantially U-shaped and having a substantially non-yieldable solid part extending around the mould at a region corresponding to the feather line of the shoe and an internal tapered lip extending there from around the mould from one side to the other side thereof, and an inflatable bag disposed to define a yieldable backing for the remainder of said apron, said bag extending inside said tapered lip and beyond it over the depth of the shoe upper.

6. In a shoe lasting machine, an outside mould generally U-shaped and disposed to embrace an end portion of a shoe, comprising in combination an outer support including means for widthwise adjustment thereof to enable an end portion of a closed shoe upper to be introduced into and removed from the mould, an apron disposed to engage with the exterior of such shoe end portion, said apron comprising a sheet of polytetrafluoroethylene, means for mounting said apron on said support, said mounting means being adjustable widthwise with said support and comprising an intermediate member substantially U-shaped and having a substantially non-yieldable portion disposed to extend around the mould at the region of the feather line of the shoe, and an inflatable bag disposed to define a yieldable backing for the remainder of the apron.

7. In a shoe lasting machine, an outside mould generally Ushaped and disposed to embrace the heel end of a shoe, comprising in combination an outer support extending around the mould, said support having a pair of oppositely disposed lateral portions pivotally connected to each other and disposed for relative pivotal movement toward and away from each other for widthwise adjustment of said support to enable the upper portion of such shoe heel to be introduced into and removed from the mould, an intermediate member extending around the inside of the outer support and formed with a substantially non-yieldable solid portion extending around it at the region of the feather line of a shoe and a lip extending from the inside of said solid portion and tapering in cross section away from said solid portion, an apron disposed to engage with the exterior of the heel end portion of a shoe, said apron comprising a sheet of polytetrafluoroethylene, means attaching said apron to the inside face of said lip of the intermediate member, and an inflatable bag positioned around said apron and the lip of the intermediate member to form a yieldable backing for the apron at positions removed from the region of the feather line of the shoe.

8. A mould according .to claim 7 comprising a flexible sheet wrapped round the inflatable bag and means anchoring said flexible sheet to the outer support.

FRANK J.

References Cited by the Examiner FOREIGN PATENTS 11/1943 Switzerland.

COHEN, Primary Examiner.

JORDAN FRANKLIN, Examiner. P. D. LAWSON, Assistant Examiner.

Nickels 12-14.4 X 

1. IN A SHOE LASTING MACHINE, AN OUTSIDE MOULD OF GENERALLY HORSE SHOE SHAPE TO EMBRACE AN END OF A SHOE, COMPRISING IN COMBINATION AND OUTRER SUPPORT, AND INTERMEDIATE MEMBER WHICH EXTENDS AROUND THE INSIDE OF THE SUPPORT AND IS FORMED WITH A SOLID PORTION EXTENDING AROUND IT AT THE REGION OF THE FEATHER LINE OF A SHOE AND A LIP EXTENDING INWARDLY FROM SAID SOLID PORTION, AN APRON SECURED TO THE INSIDE FACE OF THE LIP OF THE INTERMEDIATE MEMBER AND EXTENDING THEREBEYOND SAID APRON CONSISTING OF A SHEET OF POLYTETRAFLUOROETHYLENE AND EXTENDING HEIGHTWISWE OF THE MOULD AND AROUND IT TO A SUITABLE EXTENT TO ENGAGE WITH THE EXTERIOR OF THE END PORTION OF A SHOE, AND AN INFLATABLE BAG POSITIONED AROUND SAID LIP AND HEIGHTWISE BEYOND IT TO FORM A YIELDABLE BACKING FOR THE LIP AND THE PART OF THE APRON EXTENDING BEYOND THE LIP. 